


Lost and Found

by CuteCat213



Series: Painful Lessons, Priceless Rewards [2]
Category: Soul Eater
Genre: Day At The Beach, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Humor, M/M, Minor smutty-ish situation, Multi, Other, Patty (Warning)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-26
Updated: 2015-12-26
Packaged: 2018-05-09 10:45:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5536994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CuteCat213/pseuds/CuteCat213
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was simple-- or supposed to be. She was just a little overworked and needed a day off. Some time to bond with Crona and Maka. Simple. Until Crona invited Ragnarok, who invited Free, and Maka invited Soul, who invited... Maybe it wasn't so simple after all, still, what was the worst that could happen?<br/>Crags (RagCro), SoMa, KidStar, TsuLiz hints, and Patty being Patty.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lost and Found

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is my friend Asya's Christmas present. She requested a fic\scene for Blood Red Silver's characters. And since I'm slowly getting back into my writing...
> 
> Requested parts:
> 
> -Main category: Humor
> 
> -The gang going to the beach.
> 
> -Someone (further talk narrowing down to Kid) getting stung by a jellyfish, and Blackstar offering to pee on them to fix it.
> 
> -Crag (CronaXRagnarok) 'smutty' fluff. I have no idea how well I accomplished that, but I tried.
> 
> -Volleyball
> 
>  
> 
> Parts I specified: SoMa, Patty being Patty, Excalibur-abuse, Free digging with a spoon.
> 
>  
> 
> The following is the combined finished product of those efforts.

 

 _"You need a vacation. Take a day off, go have some fun."_ The idea had sounded tempting- at first. Take the day off, spend some time with her charges, get Maka and Crona a little more experience with things. Things like the beach.

It probably would have worked, in theory... until Crona invited Ragnarok along. Medusa would have said no, if it weren't the first thing the pinkette had ever requested of her. As it stood, she couldn't say no, and leaving Maka, Crona, and Ragnarok alone all day at the beach was asking for issues, which led to her asking Maka if there was anyone _she_ wanted to invite along. Like Soul Eater Evans would ever say no to a day off of school, and then both the children wanted to invite the Thompson sisters...

By the time all was said and done, her 'soothing day off' wasn't left with much promise in the face of twelve teenagers.

Hiro awkwardly raised a hand -the one that wasn't being held alarmingly tightly by Patty- and spoke up, "Um, why am I even here?"

Medusa's eyebrow twitched, and she did her best to smile. The grimace Maka gave told her just how well she did at that. "Because you were invited."

Her original idea to use a car for herself and foreseen two passengers was obviously out. Somewhat thankfully, Nygus had seen what her 'vacation' evolved into and immediately taken a day off herself to help. The dread-locked teacher honked from the second of two vans to get their attention, "Come on, people, let's go!"

Ragnarok raised his hand, "Hey, Teach, I can drive if you don't want to."

Free gave his brother an incredulous look, "You can't _drive_."

Unwisely, he'd spoken up from right next to his brother, and Ragnarok wasted no time in looping an arm around the werewolf's neck and forcing his head down, "Shut up, jackass, I can _so_ drive."

"Man, the last time you drove you got us stranded in the desert!"

"The last time I drove with _you_ , and that was years ago!"

" _I'll_ drive." She said, just to put an end to the argument. "Everyone just pick a van."

Crona hid behind his sister, "I-I'll stay with M-Maka and R-Ragnarok."

Liz crossed her arms, "If I have to sit in a van with _him_ -" she pointed to Excalibur, "-I'm going to stab someone. Most likely him, but there are no guarantees."

The pale boy pointed dramatically at her, "Fool! Why, when I was younger-"

"You're only sixteen, how much younger could you have been?!"

"My story begins in the twelfth century-"

"I'm tying you to the roof."

Blackstar vaulted up onto the roof of the van, "I VOLINTEER TO RIDE ON THE ROOF!"

Medusa sighed and massaged her temples. Was this really supposed to be a reward... or a punishment?

* * *

The van doors opened and teens exploded from the vehicle like SWAT members arriving on the scene. Medusa took a moment to savor the silence inside with the lack of screaming teenagers before reluctantly shutting the van off and getting out herself.

By the time Medusa managed to get herself together and make her way over to the children, they were already gathered around the back of the vans and getting their stuff out. "...Blackstar, why did you bring a sledgehammer?"

"Because watermelon-smashing!"

Medusa interposed herself in the group to see the sledgehammer in question. "Blackstar, it isn't summer, and we don't have any watermelons."

"Well, I can just use it for-"

"No."

"But-"

" _No!_ " Everyone repeated.

Medusa tried to rub away the already-forming headache and Nygus successfully herded them all into the changing rooms. She couldn't help smiling at the situation she came upon when she caught up.

Crona's voice stuttered from inside his changing room, "I-I don't know how to deal with showing this much skin..."

Ragnarok leaned his head against the side of the booth, "It's okay, you'll do fine. You're not the only one at the beach who'll be less than fully dressed, so don't worry about it."

From the other dressing room, Maka shyly stepped out, one arm across her chest and holding the opposite bicep much the same way Crona did when he was nervous, her whole face flushed. She shifted in place, obviously nervous, even though her suit was fairly modest by the standards: a cute red plaid top and matching bottom with a skirt that covered her thighs. The young ash-blonde still seemed extremely uncomfortable and tried to hide her hands.

Soul sighed, rolling his eyes. He took off his jacket and dropped it over Maka's head. She glared out from under the garment for a moment before realizing the gift she'd been given and putting it on, zipping it up past her chest and pulling the arms down past her palms so only her fingers were showing. It was going to get very hot in that when they began running around and playing games, but Medusa kept her silence.

Liz ducked into the changing room and Patty went with her, but it wasn't a moment later when the younger Thompson's head popped up over the top of their room to stare into the one next-door, "Oh, wow, Crona, that's so cute~!"

"PATTY! I CAN'T DEAL WITH PEEPING! GO AWAY, GO AWAY, GO AWAY!"

Without missing a beat, Liz's hand appeared on her sister's head and tugged her back below. "Get down here. It's rude to spy on people who are half-naked."

The pout was audible in Patty's voice, "But Crona's not half-naked, sis."

"It's not polite to spy on fully-naked people, either."

"But he was dressed!"

Ragnarok rapped on the side of the dressing room with his knuckles, "Crona, are you ready to come out? I don't know how much longer Liz will be able to hold Patty off..."

"I can't deal with this! I'm not coming out! I can't, I can't, I can't!"

The scarred teen didn't hesitate to pull off his own shirt and throw it over the top of the dressing room. "There you go. Put that on, then no one will be able to see as much."

A minute later, Crona's voice came from within: "Okay... I-I'm ready now..." The blue curtain was pushed aside and Crona inched out, face a deeper, darker shade than his sister's, most notably across the bridge of his nose and his cheekbones. Ragnarok's black tee-shirt covered everything from his neck to his thighs, the barest hint of light purple swim-trunks peeking out from the bottom. He pulled the over-large neck back up as it threatened to slip and show shoulder.

Ragnarok nodded and ruffled the nervous boy's hair, "Good job, short stuff."

Crona smiled up shyly, "Th-thank you..."

The older teen had to physically lift the smaller boy up out of the way and set him down on his opposite side to save him from being run down as Blackstar ran full-throttle for the changing room. There was an audible _thump_ as the blue-haired teen was unable to stop and collided with the far wall of the changing booth. Sighs abounded and everyone shook their heads nearly to the man.

Liz and Patty emerged from their room at last, and Kid nearly had an apoplexy, "That-that- WHAT IS THAT TRAVESTY?!"

Liz looked smugly down at her own outfit, a white two-piece bikini with lovely lilac flowers on it- and a matching white cloth tied cock-eyed around her waist, "It's a sarong."

"Take. It. Off!"

The older Thompson easily side-stepped the Shinigami's grip, "Back off, perv! If you don't like my swim suit then stay away!"

Medusa sensed significance in the younger girl's statement. Had Liz actually chosen her beach outfit with the intention to spend the day as far from Kid as could be orchestrated? If so, it was working, because the striped teen had turned around and slumped down in the sand with an aura of despair cloaking him.

Ragnarok pulled Crona to the side and already had open a tube of sunscreen, "C'mere, Short Stuff, let's get that face of yours sun-blocked so you don't get burned."

"Huh?" Crona blinked up at the taller teen in confusion and Ragnarok shook his head.

"Never mind. Just stay still." He covered his fingers with the sunscreen and dabbed it on Crona's cheeks and nose. The pinkette's nose scrunched at the cold and he crossed his eyes to try and see it. Ragnarok smiled and rubbed it in with the first two fingers of either hand.

Up across Crona's cheeks to his ears, down his neck, up his nose and across his forehead. Midnight eyes slipped closed at the ministrations and Crona's face steadily turned darker and darker.

Ragnarok tapped him on the nose again when he was done, "There you are. All done."

Crona blinked, then smiled and glanced away, "Th-thank you..."

Tsubaki had taken the opportunity to sneak into the dressing room and change herself, coming out with a tentative glance around. Her own outfit seemed chosen solely for its ability to put their resident god into a state of ruin. It was a beautiful black suit with a bright pink flower on only one side, and ruffled skirt bottom that cut asymmetrically from short on the left to long on the right. Liz threw an arm around the other girl, "Come on, Tsubaki, let's find a good spot to set things up."

"Okay..."

Patty followed the two happily in her violently orange (yet symmetrical) bathing suit. "Wait for me, sis!" She grabbed the arm of Hiro, who had yet to get changed and was feebly protesting, as she went, dragging the boy along heedlessly.

Ragnarok voiced Medusa's own thoughts, "He can get changed later, when she lets him go..."

" _If_ she lets him go." Soul muttered.

Free nodded solemnly, "In case of an emergency, your partner can be used as a flotation device."

"Blackstar! Your trunks! They're amazing!" Everyone turned around at Kid's exclamation- and facepalmed. Maka glared out through her fingers, blushing again, and Crona had covered his whole face with his hands. The trunks in question were blue, in Blackstar's signature style, meaning there was a large black star on them... symmetrically placed directly in the middle... over the crotch.

The blue-haired boy grinned at Kid, posing shamelessly, "Thanks! But did you expect anything less awesome from the amazing me?!"

Medusa sighed again. It was going to be a loooong day...

* * *

"But-"

"No."

"But-"

" _No."_

Medusa's mouth fell into a scowl, "Nygus-"

Her friend took her by the shoulders, "Medusa, _no_. This was meant to be a vacation for you. Go get changed. I'll handle the kids and then we're _both_ going to go relax."

"But-"

The dark-skinned woman put one hand on her hip and the pointed imperiously to the now-empty dressing rooms with the other, " _Go_!"

Medusa huffed but gave in and made her way up the beach again. Nygus crossed her arms and turned on the nervous teenagers with a crystal blue glare that had them all shifting anxiously. Her hand lashed out and Ragnarok flinched even as it came to a stop a good inch away from his nose, " _You_ are in charge. If anything happens to anyone, not only will you be the one taking them to the hospital, you'll be driving _all_ of them home in a single vehicle while Medi and I take the other van ourselves."

Free laughed and slapped his brother on the back, "Good, job, bro!"

His laughter was cut off as Nygus' finger turned to him, "You, too. Anyone winds up seriously injured or dead, and you'll spend so long in solitary at your room back at DWMA you'll forget your own name."

Free gulped and nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

The finishing glare she gave them was even more effective than usual with her whole face visible for once, not covered by bandages. Then it disappeared as she rounded on the golden-haired Witch making her way back to them and smiled brightly as though she hadn't been threatening her students' lives just moments before, "Ready to go relax?"

Medusa brushed at her own bikini-skirt to remove stray sand granules, "I'm not sure-"

"Sure you are. Ragnarok and Free volunteered to chaperon and have everything under control." She glanced over her shoulder menacingly, "Don't you, boys?"

Both older teens stood at attention and swallowed, "Yes, ma'am!"

Medusa looked between the brothers and her friend searchingly, but no one gave away anything and she sighed, "Very well. I suppose so."

Free and Ragnarok both let out huge breaths of relief when the two woman finally left. They turned to the others exchanged nervous glances when Free broached the subject of their dual leadership: "Well, what first?"

"Something that won't be too dangerous. Volleyball. They have a net further down the beach that's unoccupied."

"Two teams of six?"

Ragnarok shrugged, "Works for me. Everyone gather 'round!"

* * *

"...I can't help but get the feeling this is a bad idea."

Obviously no one had been willing to pick Excalibur as their teammate willingly, but the fact of him and Liz just being on the same team seemed like a _huge_ mistake. You just did not willingly put on one team someone and the person who had legitimately tried to shoot them. There was a law of the universe out there somewhere stating just that, surely.

Maka shrugged philosophically, "Better than being on opposing teams."

Soul wasn't so sure. At least being on opposite teams, Liz would have had a chance to vent her aggression on the pale boy that didn't include actively trying to kill him. Soul sighed and accepted the inevitable as Maka and Liz both served. The usual rules of beach volleyball were two teams of two, but with so many of them on each side, the only feasible way for everyone to get the chance to play was by adding a second ball into play at the same time. This was either going to be very exciting or very bloody.

Soul shook out his arms and waited for the action to start. His team consisted of himself, Maka, Crona, Kid, and Blackstar, captained by Ragnarok. Free's team had Patty, Liz, Tsubaki, Hiro, and Excalibur. They seemed fairly evenly matched, really.

Liz and Maka both served at the same time, and the chaos was on. Blackstar dove after the incoming ball and sent it high into the air- too high, really, for any form of accuracy. Kid backed up, trying to get a lock on the ball, at the same time that Patty on the other side pounced and sent the other ball back over at them. Soul went after that one, jumping over Blackstar's prone form to set it up for Maka. Ragnarok was closer, though, and spiked it back over the net.

Kid had to dive himself and only just managed to hit their incoming ball back where the rest of them could get at it, and Blackstar was back up in time to spike that one over the net with way more force than necessary. Hiro looked over from Free sending the one his brother had hit into the air just in time to take Blackstar's cannonball straight to the face.

Kid had to set up the next shot as Free's ball came back over the net, because Soul, like all of their opposing team, was too stunned staring at Hiro's fallen form spurting blood from the nose to do much of anything. Tsubaki dragged him to the side for some battlefield first-aide and Patty took up the ball, squeezing it in her hands so hard it threatened to pop. She passed it to Liz, who set it up, and then the small blond jumped and spiked the ball right back, deliberately aiming for the back of Blackstar's head as he strutted around from his own successful attack.

"Blackstar!" Soul wasn't the only one to shout the blue-haired boy's name, but it didn't do anything except get the teen to turn around just in time to take the revenge-ball to the face. The ball went straight up in the air after rebounding and Kid had enough foresight to send it back over the net just a moment behind Maka's before running to tend to their downed member.

Blackstar sat up, shaking his head and ignoring his bruised and swollen -but not bleeding- nose. "Ah'm fine. Somefing like this won't shtop the Amacing Blackshtar!" He jumped up, ready to go again. The balls returned over the net and Crona, after seeing the sheer potential for violence in the game, squealed and jumped out of the way when the trajectory of one came too near him. Not that Soul really blamed him, he hadn't signed up for blood sport when he'd agreed to come to the beach.

Ragnarok dove to save the ball while Maka set up the other one, and Soul had no choice but to take the shot, sending it over the net towards Liz, the less blood-thirsty Thompson at the moment. On the sidelines, Tsubaki had set Hiro up with tissues in his nose to stem the bleeding and took her place again, setting up the ball before it reached Liz. The blonde nodded and prepared to spike it when Excalibur jumped in and stole the shot. "Fools!" He landed and brushed off his white trunks, "The legend of my volleyball prowess goes back to the twelfth century!"

Liz visibly clenched her teeth and Soul only saw Crona making the shot Ragnarok had set up in his peripheral vision. Maka passed the incoming ball to Kid, who whispered something to Blackstar as he set it up, and the blue-haired teen spiked it back towards their opponents. Tsubaki blocked Crona's lackluster shot and returned it without passing or spiking it. Liz set herself up to block Blackstar's attack- and Excalibur hit it, sending it up into the air. Apparently out of all tolerance, Liz jumped up to take the shot and spiked the ball ridiculously hard... directly down on her own teammate.

Crona grabbed Tsubaki's gentle return right out of the air and held it in his hands as everyone stopped and stared in disbelief as the other ball hit the back of Excalibur's head so hard it bounced out of bounds. Liz stood over the crumpled form, seething, and Patty crouched down, poking the pale boy's unresponsive form.

Ragnarok ran a hand through his hair and sighed, "I think that's enough volleyball..."

Free nodded mutely, feeling his freedom slipping away through his fingers.

* * *

Maka dug her toes into the wet sand and bent down to pick up another shell. She was coming by quite the collection of them, filling the pockets of Soul's jacket. The white-haired boy fell off his board again and crashed into the waves out where Ragnarok was teaching him to surf.

Crona brought up a sand-dollar to show her, both of them staying well back from the water. Maka looked up when Soul shouted, going head over heels as his board went up into the air. She winced at the impact when he hit and didn't get back up, laying face-down in the water as the waves carried him to shore. Maka crouched down and poked his head, "Soul?"

He didn't move anything besides his arm, to give a thumbs-up, "It's all cool."

"That one seemed... worse, than the others."

Soul finally lifted his head, "You say that like the others were bad."

"No, no! It was very... cool."

Soul locked eyes with her for a full minute, "...You're humoring me, aren't you?"

Maka lifted her hand and held her index finger and thumb a half-inch apart, "Little bit."

"Oh, someone thinks they're clever." Soul rolled over as Ragnarok came up, dragging Free by the fake shark fin on his back.

"It was funny."

"You're gonna think it's funny when you're a hundred-and-four and still grounded."

Free raised a finger and opened his mouth, then let it fall and slumped, walking off.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to bury myself."

"Sand castle time it is, then."

Crona stood up and dusted off his knees, "I'll help! I have some t-things I picked up."

Maka put her hands on her hips as she watched Ragnarok lead her brother off. Soul never looked away from her, "He's still your brother."

"You've said that before."

"And it's still true. You're still his most important person."

"You've said _that_ before, too."

"Maka, _everything's_ been said before. I could say literally _anything_ and it will have been said before- or at least all the parts of it."

"Components."

Soul made a flicking motion, speckling her with sand, "Yeah, whatever. My point is, I could say something completely nuts, like, like-"

"I think I stepped on a jellyfish." Kid supplied.

Soul nodded, "Like I think I stepped on a- wait, what? Kid, are you serious?" He pushed up from the sand and they both turned around to spot the shinigami near a rock outcropping down the beach.

Kid stared down at something in the sand and lifted his foot to check the sole, "Yes, that was definitely a jellyfish." He calmly took a deep breath- and then screamed, "I'M ASSYMETRICAL! LOOK AT THESE WELTS! HOW AM I EVER GOING TO COPY THEM EXACTLY ON THE OPPOSITE FOOT?!"

Blackstar was at his side in an instant and grabbing Kid's wrist as he went to lean down, "Whoa, Kid, don't. Leave the jellyfish alone, man."

"I AM ASSYMETRICAL, Blackstar! ASSYMETRICAL!"

"I know this is hard to believe for you, but BEING ASSYMETRICAL WILL NOT KILL YOU! JELLYFISH, ON THE OTHER HAND-"

Soul leaned close to Maka so he wouldn't be overheard, "...Can gods of death die of jellyfish poison?"

Maka thought about it for a moment- and sweatdropped, "Let's not wait and find out."

They raced over and Soul grabbed Kid's other arm to keep him from stepping on the jellyfish again, "Man, what is wrong with you? Maka, how do you fix jellyfish stings?"

The ash-blonde's face heated, "Um, someone has to, er, pee on it."

All three boys stared at her, then Soul was left on his own restraining Kid as Blackstar raised both hands, "I VOLINTEER!"

Kid grimaced, "Disgusting..."

Soul let the death god go and shrugged, "Well, fine then, if you want to lose the foot and be permanently asymmetrical..."

Kid grabbed Star's and shook him, "Pee on my foot, right now, Blackstar! I can't be asymmetrical!"

All three of them were kind enough not to mention the hated stripes. Blackstar fist-pumped, "Dude, hell yeah!" He went to rip his trunks off then and there and Soul shoved him from behind, sending Star and Kid sprawling into the sand.

"Hey, jerk, don't do that right here! Do you not notice the girl standing just in front of you?" He motioned grandly to Maka, who had turned around and was staring intensely up at the sky.

Star picked himself up and dusted off, "Behind the rocks?"

"Behind the rocks." Soul confirmed, his opinion on Blackstar's intelligence clear in his voice.

Star helped Kid limp behind the rocks and Soul took up standing next to Maka as she held a sleeve-hidden hand over her mouth. He grinned, too, "Blackstar."

She nodded. "Blackstar."

"Will you watch where you're aiming?!"

"Hold still and stop bitching! My aim is god-like!"

Maka covered her eyes and Soul bit his fist to stifle his snickers. There was a moment of silence and Soul opened his mouth to speak when Kid's voice cut him off.

"...Now the other foot."

"Seriously?"

"It _must_ be symmetrical. Perfect balance must be maintained at all times."

"Okay... It's your foot."

Maka's shoulders jerked and spasmed and Soul patted her consolingly on the back. Her entire face was flushed from the effort of suppressing her laughter and she waved him off as she focused on collecting herself. Soul turned around to deal with their friends himself as they came back around the boulder. He was at a loss for something to say. Blackstar never had that problem.

The blue-haired teen crouched down by the jellyfish and poked the bell with his finger, getting no response. "Dude, you murderer!"

Kid looked up from inspecting his feet, "What?"

Star pointed accusingly at him, "You just murdered Dory's Squishy!"

"It _stung_ me!" Kid argued, blatantly offended.

"Yeah, well, you killed it, I think it got the worse end of the bargain!"

"I'm a god of _death_ , Blackstar!"

Star crossed his arms and glared at the shinigami, "Man, you _deserved_ to get peed on."

Maka lost it and collapsed in the sand, clutching her stomach as she laughed. Soul facepalmed. _Maybe I should have stayed back at school today..._

* * *

Ragnarok crossed his arms and observed his brother digging vigorously in the sand with- with a spoon. "What are you doing?"

The werewolf paused and looked up at him,"...Digging my grave."

"With a spoon? What, are you in prison or something? And did you bring that thing all the way here just for that?"

"...Maybe."

Ragnarok sighed tilted his head, "And how's that working for you?"

Free stared assessingly at the spoon in his hand, "...Not as well as I'd hoped..." He shrugged, "It's not like we brought a shovel."

"Blackstar brought a sledgehammer."

"How well could I dig with a sledgehammer?"

"Couldn't do any worse than with a spoon."

Free pouted, "Touche..."

"I DID IT~!" Ragnarok helped Free out of the -admittedly impressive- three foot hole he'd managed to dig in the sand, and went to see what the commotion was about. They both stared in shocked wonder at the six-foot deep trench that Patty had somehow managed to dig out. She beamed up at them, "Mine is the deepest!"

Kid spoke up from behind the perfect-to-scale model of the DWMA he was crafting out of sand, a large divot in the beach behind him where Blackstar had been digging up the sand so Kid wouldn't have to walk on his bad foot.

Liz nodded at her sister, "Good job, Patty."

Free frowned in confusion and looked to his brother, "That wasn't the-"

"Good job, Patty!" Echoed from the others.

Ragnarok patted his brother's back, "There, there. I'm sure she'll help you bury yourself if you ask her nicely. It _is_ a very impressive grave."

"I could do that, too." Free protested.

"You'll need a bigger spoon."

Patty jumped up, "I have a spoon!" She ran to the vans and came back minutes later with a serving spoon that she held out to Free proudly, "You can have my spoon~"

Free took the offering, blinking, "...Why do you have a spoon?"

The little blonde shrugged, "Just 'cause. Always be prepared! Blackstar brought a hammer. _You_ brought a spoon, so you know, right?"

"I- yeah. Thank you, Patty."

"Yup~! Excuse me, I got some buryin' to do! Hey, sis, can I bury you?!"

"Not right now, Patty. I'm helping Tsubaki."

Patty held a finger to her chin thoughtfully, turning around to look at each of them, and stopped when her gaze landed on Hiro, "Hiiirooo~ Let me bury you!"

The blonde boy took off running, "Noooo! I don't want to dieee!"

"Hiro! Come _back_ here!"

The brothers watched them go, sweatdropping. Free held up his new, bigger make-shift shovel, "I'm gonna-"

"Yeah." Free might have had the right idea about how do deal with this vacation.

* * *

Liz looked up from her Mer-Tsubaki living sand sculpture when she realized she couldn't hear any arguing. It was entirely too quiet. "...Where did Patty and Blackstar go?"

Everyone traded glances and realized they hadn't seen either of the two in several minutes. Kid hadn't heard Blackstar telling him to make his sculpture bigger for at least the past quarter-hour. Hiro looked up from trying to dig Excalibur out of the sand-grave Patty had buried him him. He managed to just get the unconscious boy's head out of the sand and looked around for the energetic blonde.

Soul cut the air with a slash of his hand, "It's fine, no one freak out. They can't have gotten far. Everyone just think of the most stupidly dangerous thing you can do at the beach."

It didn't take long for a horrifying consensus to emerge: "Diving." Everyone ran for the water and spread out along the shore.

"Paatttyyy!" Liz cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted again, "Patttyyy!"

"Blackstar! Staaar!"

"Down there!" Tsubaki spotted them first: Blackstar face-down in the sand and Patty kneeling by him, poking him in the head with a stick she'd gotten who-knew-where.

Ragnarok was the first to get to them and turned Star over, putting his ear to Blackstar's chest. "What happened?!"

Patty poked him with a stick again, "We played in the water and held our breaths to see who could do it longer." She smiled up at them, "I wooonnn~! But then he was all floaty and wouldn't play anymore do I dragged him here and poked him." She demonstrated by poking him again.

Free lost his mind, hands clasped to his head, "Man, oh _man!_ We're dead! We are so dead! We're dead, we're dead, we're dead!"

Ragnarok was too busy pinching Blackstar's nose and giving him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to respond to his brother's utter panic, but the look he shot Free couldn't have been more unamused. Everyone crowded around as he worked and Liz hugged Patty to her chest. A few tense moments later, Blackstar coughed and rolled over, spitting up water.

"Man... that sucked so much."

Liz stole the stick from Patty's hand and whacked the blue-haired boy with it, "You idiot! You stupid, suicidal- Oooh!"

Blackstar didn't get a chance to defend his decision because Free tackled him into the sand and held the struggling teen's head to his chest, "He's alive! He's alive! And we're not dead!"

Ragnarok sighed and patted Free on the back, "Way to keep calm in a crisis, bro."

* * *

Everyone was calmer after the near-miss, and even Blackstar seemed wary of trying any more big stunts. Liz seemed to be keeping a close leash on Patty, though, because _nothing_ stopped Patty. Some of the others on the beach were going to make a bonfire and invited them to a crab-bake, so everyone was just sort of dragging their heels until then. It wouldn't be long until the sun set.

Ragnarok picked up every shell or bit of rock he came across and did his best to skip it across the waves. Crona stuck close to his side, hand brushing against his free one every few steps. He stopped when Crona did, "Oh! I-I found something." He reached in the pocket of his trunks and held his closed hand out.

Ragnarok looked at him questioningly, and held out his own hand when Crona nodded. The pinkette dropped his find into his open palm and he lifted it up to inspect it. "A sand dollar. Nice."

"You c-can have it... if you want it. N-not that you _have_ to if you don't-"

"It's great. Thank you, Crona."

The shorter teen nodded and flushed, holding the hem of his tee-shirt and twisting it compulsively.

Ragnarok tilted his head and smirked, "Something you want to ask me?"

Crona twitched and nodded, "That thing you did earlier."

"Which thing?"

"That... that one that saved Blackstar."

"Yeah, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation."

"Could you... could you show me how to do that?"

Ragnarok blinked unseeingly, then tilted his head and tapped it against his hand. He must have had water in his ears. Or sunstroke. Or... something. Because he could have sworn Crona had just asked him- "You want me to teach you... how to resuscitate someone?" The pinkette nodded and Ragnarok found himself voiceless. "Ah..."

"You don't have-"

"No! It is perfectly fine! I'd be _happy_ to teach you!" He winced at his own volume and rubbed the back of his neck while checking to make sure he hadn't drawn too much attention. "Ah... over here is good." He led Crona next to a bare spot on the beach near where they had been building their sand sculptures earlier and sat down. Crona sat next to him and turned to face him, watching unflinchingly.

"So... how do you... resuscitate someone?"

"W-well..." Dammit, it wasn't like him to stutter- ever. He took a fortifying breath and blew it out. "First, you check to see if they need it. If they're breathing, or not. And if they aren't breathing, check to see if you can hear their heartbeat."

Crona nodded, scooting closer, and Ragnarok held his breath. The smaller teen leaned forward, turning his head and pressing his ear against Ragnarok's chest. He was completely certain it was unnecessary; Maka and Soul could probably hear how hard his heart was thudding all the way down the beach. Crona was so close he was almost in Ragnarok's lap.

"And if you don't hear a heartbeat?"

"Th-then you place your hands here, over their heart." He reached out and demonstrated, Crona's own heartbeat fluttering like a bird under his palms. "And you press on it, firmly, but not too hard or you could break their ribs. About five times. And then, you- ah. You would give them mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, the same as if their heart was beating but they weren't breathing."

"And h-how do you do t-that?"

Crona wouldn't need to place his ear against Ragnarok's chest to hear it beating, he was fully convinced the damn thing was about to burst from his rib cage wholesale. He took the pinkette's chin between his fingers and tilted his head up, "Like... like this." He pressed his lips to Crona's. The smaller teen opened his mouth for him and Ragnarok shared his breath with him, feeling Crona's chest expand against his own. All the while, the delirious thought ran through his mind: _He takes my breath away._

Crona breathed back into him and he pulled away, midnight eyes staring up into his as Crona huffed out little breaths against his lips. _My breath for your breath. Your heart for mine?_ Fuck, he was so screwed.

He cleared his throat and looked away, "But... but obviously if the person's unconscious, you'd need to pinch their nose and tilt their head back in order to breathe for them. But, er, yeah, basically the same." _Shut up, you moron, you're making an idiot of yourself._

"Sh-show me again?"

He looked back, because he could never look at Crona enough, the younger teen's whole face almost violently purple with the force of his blush. _Yes. All my yes, always._ He lowered his head again, and there wasn't even the pretense of teaching anything related to CPR.

Crona kissed shyly, unsure, but Ragnarok was more than sure enough for both of them, tongue darting out to taste the blushing pinkette. Crona groaned into his mouth and that was it for the last of his sanity. _You. Just you. Only you. Crona._

"Guys! Come on! It's time for the epic bonfire!"

Crona broke off with a gasp, hiding his face against Ragnarok's chest, and the older teen swore silently but viciously, regretting having saved the blue-haired annoyance's life earlier. He was set to stand up and beat the Star _black_ _and blue_ , but Crona's desperate hold on his hand drew his attention to something pressing against his stomach. Well, no wonder Crona was vehemently against either of them standing up.

Ragnarok spared another mental invective for Blackstar and sighed, "Go on without us, we'll catch up!"

"Whatever! More for the outstanding Blackstar!" The rambunctious teen left and Ragnarok counted to ten before turning back to Crona.

The pinkette's whole face looked painfully flushed and he wouldn't raise his head, hands gripping the hem of his tee-shirt and pulling it down as far as he possibly could, shifting uncomfortably in place. He sighed and touched Crona's chin, pushing him to raise his head. Midnight blue eyes gleamed with a sheen of tears. "A little too far?" An embarrassed nod was his only reply and Ragnarok smiled, pulling Crona in and kissing him again, chastely, then moving his mouth up to the smaller boy's temple. "It's okay. You'll be fine again in a few minutes." Aside from this not being the place for any of this because Ragnarok wasn't big on voyeurism, and the fact that Crona's overprotective sister would skin him alive if he went any further, he wasn't going to push the timid pinkette. "...Any questions about resuscitating anymore?"

Crona shook his head. "Th-th-thank you."

"No, thank you." Ragnarok pressed another kiss to the pinkette's hairline. "Thank you."

* * *

Maka snuck her hand under her bathing suit's skirt to deal with a wedgie, hiding behind Soul so no one would notice her. Soul grinned toothily over his shoulder, eyes carefully away from her, "And they say knights need shining armor."

Maka smiled back and tugged his jacket down so her stomach was completely covered, "Thanks, Soul."

"Anytime, Tiny. You ready to eat?"

"Yep."

They made their way to the bonfire where their friends waited along with several other beach-goers. Soul expected them to be cooking the crabs that they'd been invited to help eat, or at the very least roasting marshmallows. But everyone seemed to be busy hunting for... something.

Soul voiced the question first: "What are you all doing?"

"The crabs are missing."

"Like... someone stole them?"

"Had to be. The whole cooler's gone."

"Why would someone steal crabs?"

"Maybe they were hungrier than us."

Blackstar's back could be seen in the distance, picking through the boulders where he'd had his earlier adventures to see if the crustaceans had taken to hiding under the rocks. Soul doubted in the extreme that the crabs would be among the rocks, but he didn't have any better suggestions on where to look.

He sighed and ruffled his hair, "Well if there's no food and no sun, we might as well gather our things and get ready to head back."

Liz nodded and stood up, "Yeah, fair enough."

Excalibur, finally conscious again, stood up when Liz did, maintaining a three meter distance from her at all times. "...I'm prepared to return. ...Fools." The last was a mutter Soul wouldn't have heard if the pale boy weren't so close to them.

Soul scanned up and down the beach for the approximate spot he'd learned to surf earlier. "...Where's my surf board?"

Hiro was the first one to notice something else missing: "...Where's Patty?"

At just that moment, maniacal cackling could be heard from further down the beach and they all ran towards it. The sight they came upon froze everyone in their tracks, DWMA students and civilians alike. Patty stood at the edge of the shore, head tossed back and laughing, and out in the distance, on the water, visible in the moonlight...

"Is that my surf board?"

"Are those the crabs?"

Patty cackled again, "BE FREE, MY LITTLE AQUATIC FRIENDS! BE FREE!"

As one, the DWMA students all facepalmed. Soul gave a deep, _deep_ sigh and shook his head, "Let's just go home." Yeah, he really probably should have just stayed back at school.

* * *

Medusa let out a refreshed breath as everyone piled into the van. It _had_ been a surprisingly relaxing day for her, and she would never be able to thank Nygus enough for helping. Everyone climbed in and buckled their belts, too worn out with the day's activities to cause a fuss even with Liz only a seat behind Excalibur, and she pulled out after Nygus' van. It had been a good vacation after all, even if she hadn't gotten the chance to spend it with Maka and Crona personally.

She checked the mirror again, frowning as she noticed something missing: "Where's Blackstar?"

From the open windows, the missing student's voice was easily heard- along with the _thump_ from the roof of the vehicle, "WHOO-HOOOOO!" Medusa hit the brakes and everyone shouted as they were jerked forward against their seat belts, Blackstar yelping the loudest before he tumbled down over the windshield and onto the pavement.

The golden-eyed Witch stared blankly out over the front of the van. _I killed a student._

The blue-haired teen in question popped up like a daisy, brushing off his arms and grinning, "That. Was... AWESOME! Let me do it again!"

"Blackstar! Get in the car! There are an uneven number of people in the car right now. Blackstar!" Kid shouted out his window.

"You dumb-ass! Are you _trying_ to get yourself killed?!"

"FOOL!"

Medusa sighed and laid her forehead against the steering wheel, feeling the muscles in her shoulder begin to knot up. _Well, it was nice while it lasted._


End file.
